Just have to vent that I feel my Endo is ignoring my symptoms when I know something is not right. 6 weeks ago I had RAI treatment. I am allergic to anti-thyroid medications so I have been anxiously awaiting my thyroid levels to go down to normal (not too low so I don't end up with hypo). About a week ago, I started to have some chest pain like either I breathed in too much air or pulled a muscle. It comes and goes but doesn't feel like anything I have felt lately. I'm also really tired most days; nothing is helping me stay awake! I called my endo's office and I just had my first labs done since doing RAI. His secretary told me that my thyroid levels are normal and that the Endo said to go to urgent care or GP if chest pains continue. Meanwhile, I'm monitoring my blood pressure and it's lower than it usually is. I wonder at what point does the Endo put me on synthetic hormone? Since I'm “normal” wouldn't that be a good time to start or what if we wait too long and I'm hypo-? As I'm sitting here typing, I can barely keep my eyes open… I just want to be normal and NOT SO TIRED!

It's important to get copies of your lab reports, AmyG, so that you can follow along and track your progress.

But most important is for you to understand that “getting to normal levels of thyroid,” does NOT mean you will feel normal right off the bat. Given the current hurricane going up the coast, the analogy may help. Hyperthyroidism in the body is a bit like having a hurricane tear up a community. It causes damage. Just because the winds go away things are not instantly normal. It takes time to rebuild. And it takes time to rebuild your body after being hyperthyroid. To build up stamina, you must exercise (once your doctor gives you the all clear for exericise.) After RAI my body was very tired – but it was tired from overworking for the previous every how many months. I needed to continue to get appropriate levels of rest and exercise for a while.

You need to be patient, and work with the process. Your doctor cannot give you replacement hormone while your thyroid hormone levels are “normal,” because that would undoubtedly make you hyperthyroid all over again.

I agree with Bobbi,

I had my thyroidectomy 4 months ago and I can honestly say that it has only been in the last few weeks that I've had glimmers of being normal, energetic, sleeping well, and living my life without actually (get ready for this) NOT thinking about my health. I felt much, much, much better right after the surgery as far as my hyper symptoms. Most of them were gone immediately, but a few lingered and still linger somewhat, but not nearly as bad as even 2 months ago. It's amazing how much time it really takes your body to adjust. I was fortunate in that my levels normalized after 1 Synthroid dose adjustment, but I didn't “feel” normal until about 2 months after that dose increase. Again, I still don't feel 100% pre- Graves me, but definitely closer than I was. I still get some tension headaches and feel a little off sometimes, but in general, even that is better than a month ago. Keep strong.